One NBA executive would only give up one first-round pick in a trade for New Orleans Pelicans star Zion Williamson, according to HoopsHype’s Michael Scotto.
“Yet, as always, the success of the Pelicans hinges on the health of Williamson, who another NBA executive told HoopsHype he’d only consider trading one first-round pick to acquire due to his consistent durability concerns,” Scotto wrote.
The No. 1 overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft, Williamson is an impactful player when he’s on the court, however, the issue is that injuries have knocked him out of action far too often in his NBA career.
As a rookie, Williamson appeared in just 24 games for New Orleans, but he still finished third in the league’s Rookie of the Year voting.
In his second NBA season, Williams was able to play in the majority of New Orleans’ games (61 to be exact), and he earned his first All-Star selection.
Since then, things have been pretty downhill for the two-time All-Star. Williamson missed the entire 2021-22 season with a foot injury. He followed that up with an All-Star campaign in the 2022-23 season, but he ended up playing in just 29 total games.
The 2023-24 season was arguably the most successful of Williamson’s career, as he played in a career-high 70 games during the regular season. New Orleans made the play-in tournament as a result, and it was hoping to make some noise in the playoffs.
Unfortunately, Williamson injured his hamstring in the Pelicans’ play-in game against the Los Angeles Lakers. Los Angeles went on to win the game, and the Pelicans had very little postseason success.
While they still earned the No. 8 seed last season, the Pelicans were swept in the first round of the playoffs by the Oklahoma City Thunder.
This season, Williamson has appeared in just six games after injuring his hamstring again. New Orleans is off to a terrible start, winning just four of its first 21 games.
Since Williamson came to the franchise, the Pelicans are an impressive 101-89 when he plays. However, when he’s out, New Orleans is just 91-130.
Williamson is an All-Star level player, as he averages 24.6 points, 6.6 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game for his career. However, his lengthy injury history certainly makes him a risky player for any team to consider trading for this season and beyond.
